Choosing a Photographer for your LDS Wedding

by Jen on October 15, 2009

A few years after your wedding, your memories of the day will start to fade. What will be left to jog your memory? Those all-important wedding photos! In fact you’ll probably proudly display those wedding pictures somewhere in your home for the rest of your life… wow how’s that for pressure?

So what do you need to know to choose a good wedding photographer? And is choosing a photographer for an LDS temple wedding different from the norm? To answer this question, we asked LDS wedding photographer Paige Green of The Green Paige Photography in Orange County, CA.

Paige’s Tips For Choosing Your Wedding Photographer:

First of all, you need to decide whether or not you love their work. It sounds so simple, but you’d be surprised how this is such a hurdle for so many brides. Sometimes you’ll simply like the photographer’s work, but love their price. Sometimes you’ll want so badly to love a photographer’s work, because its artsy, or classic or something you think you’re supposed to like, but in reality it’s just not your style. You are going to have a million and one things running through your mind on the day of your wedding… you don’t need the stress of worrying about how your photographer is capturing your precious moments to be added on top of it all. If you love their work, you’ll trust them. If you trust them, you’ll have peace of mind.

Second of all, it’s so important to “mesh” with your photographer. You’ll probably spend more time with them than you will with any of your guests that day; you need to like them. For me, it’s important to be a happy professional. Meaning: Personable, excited and 100% myself, but still maintain reliability and a professional demeanor. Think of it this way; if you wouldn’t want a person to be your friend, you probably shouldn’t make them your photographer.

A great photographer is willing to work with you. Now, I don’t mean they should rearrange their entire package and contract structure, or change their editing and shooting style, but a great photographer always has a little give in one aspect or another.

And lastly, I believe it’s so important to find a photographer who is so excited for you and your fiancé (not the fact that they booked a job). It’s probably the most important day of your life, and that must be acknowledged!

A little Bonus tip for those of you being sealed in an LDS Temple: It’s a blessing when your photographer is LDS as well. There are so many reasons why working with someone within your own faith is a plus, but the reasons multiply in regards to the person who will be capturing your moments that day– a great deal of them having to do with the sacred ceremony within the Temple. An LDS photographer has a better understanding and appreciation of the sanctity and eternal importance of your sealing. (It’s that understanding and emotion I strive to capture within my Sealed Brides and Grooms…that “wow… forever…” moment). Not to mention an LDS photographer will also understand the importance of the Temple and the beauty of its architectural symbolism (i.e. the Angel Moroni) within your images. Basically, it’s another level on which you can connect and sync with your photographer, which is always a big plus!

Paige and Blake Green are a husband and wife photography team from Southern California. They offer a Temple Wedding Package which includes:

4 hours of portrait and reception coverage: because you don’t need as much time as a traditional bride whose ceremony is photographed, so why pay for it?

20 page Press Printed Album: although traditional Wedding albums are available for upgrade, they know most couples being sealed are young and barley getting their finical footing, so they strive to keep the cost of this package low without sacrificing quality or bragging abilities.

Online proofing gallery for 3 months: so you can share your wedding images all over the world, with family, friends, old missionary companions and beloved roommates.

Digital negatives of 500 images: Because its YOUR wedding! It’s the most important day of your life and you shouldn’t have to sift through 2,000+ images to pick out the choice images, and you shouldn’t have to choose just a few images and order prints from them. Your images to print, copy and cherish for eternity!

Blake and Paige shoot in L.A., Orange, and San Diego counties (which include the Los Angeles, Newport Beach and San Diego Temples) but are happy to travel to any location for an additional fee. Learn more about The Green Paige Photography at http://tgpphotography.com. Tell them you heard about them on JenMagazine.com to receive-

A complimentary Engagement session when you book a “Temple” or “Jade” package

A complimentary online and DVD slideshow when you book an “Emerald” or “Envy” package